OMGWTFSETLA October 7, 2007 6:41 PM   Subscribe

Dual-Tone Multifrequency Aardvark? Delirium Tremens Master of Fine Arts?

Perhaps I'm hopelessly out-of-touch, but linking to some background for an otherwise unexplained acronym might be nice.

Also, kids, off the lawn, and stop touching my cat.
posted by oats to Etiquette/Policy at 6:41 PM (57 comments total)

Come on.
posted by ALongDecember at 6:45 PM on October 7, 2007 [1 favorite]


Stands for "dump the motherfucker already". From the Savage Love column appearing in your local alternative weekly.
posted by friendlyjuan at 6:45 PM on October 7, 2007


I thought it was "Do Thesepants Makemelook Fat, Alice"?
posted by wendell at 6:47 PM on October 7, 2007 [2 favorites]


Has anyone registered metapedantic.com as a domain name yet? This could be your chance.
posted by chinston at 6:49 PM on October 7, 2007


don't taze me, fraternal african
posted by pyramid termite at 6:58 PM on October 7, 2007 [29 favorites]


Too bad google was broken.
posted by klangklangston at 6:58 PM on October 7, 2007


Hey, that doesn't spell DTMFA!
posted by ALongDecember at 6:59 PM on October 7, 2007 [1 favorite]


Doesn't that make a fine acronym?
posted by goodnewsfortheinsane at 7:03 PM on October 7, 2007 [13 favorites]


For when you care enough to give advice in acronym form.
posted by smackfu at 7:07 PM on October 7, 2007


Don't touch my fat ass?
posted by miss lynnster at 7:09 PM on October 7, 2007 [2 favorites]


Girlfriend, I ain't touchin yo ass cuz it ain't fat enough, r'member?
posted by goodnewsfortheinsane at 7:17 PM on October 7, 2007


I think it's the agency in charge of roughing up Fijians under the Homeland Security act. Either that or one of those banned weed-killers.
posted by Abiezer at 7:20 PM on October 7, 2007


Sigh. Don't know why I thought a snarky MeTa post would be better than a snarky AskMe comment. Lesson learned.
posted by oats at 7:21 PM on October 7, 2007


(Directed more at the jfgi'ers than at my fellow acronymists. Have at, soldiers.)
posted by oats at 7:23 PM on October 7, 2007


The A is for 'already'? I'd always thought 'asshole'. I like my acronyms to be as profane as possible, TYVM.
posted by CKmtl at 7:24 PM on October 7, 2007


To your vicious mother? Teach your violence maybe?

Perhaps I'm hopelessly out-of-touch, but linking to some background for an otherwise unexplained acronym might be nice.
posted by ALongDecember at 7:28 PM on October 7, 2007


I always thought of it as 'already', since it seems to be advice generally given to people who really should've gotten out of something a long time ago but refuse to see it. :P
posted by Phire at 7:28 PM on October 7, 2007


Phire: So it seems. I'd always read a bit of "you deserve better, he/she sucks" into it... so I assumed it was (M)other-(F)ucking (A)sshole.
posted by CKmtl at 7:35 PM on October 7, 2007


What does jfgi mean?

I keed. I keed.
posted by miss lynnster at 7:40 PM on October 7, 2007


Don't touch my fat ass?

Or perhaps Don't Taunt Metatalk, Fat Ass?
posted by ThePinkSuperhero at 7:44 PM on October 7, 2007 [4 favorites]


WDOAAOK
posted by achmorrison at 7:45 PM on October 7, 2007


Don't Touch Me Funnily Again!
posted by jessamyn (staff) at 7:46 PM on October 7, 2007 [1 favorite]


Directed more at the jfgi'ers than at my fellow acronymists.

I don't see any provocation to snark at the Jewish Federation of Greater Indianapolis. Weird.
posted by desuetude at 7:50 PM on October 7, 2007


As much as I love the snarky comments -- Seriously? You couldn't just google it? Look it up on urbandictionary.com?
posted by spec80 at 7:56 PM on October 7, 2007


Here's a less snarky answer -- and yes it's a better idea to drop this in MeTa than snark in AskMe -- one of the things about all sorts of communities is the way you determine who is and isn't part of the community.

On MeFi we have a slim barrier to membership but there are a lot of other ways that people differentiate in various us v. them ways. A lot of the acronymizing and geekspeak is just another way of making "one of us?" distinctions not really consciously posturing but just "Oh if you read MeFi you probably also know about the LOLCATS and AYBABTU and XKCD."

I don't think people are trying to be exclusionary or obscure, just that there is a sense sometimes that MeFi and the larger internet is a big living room with one big TV that we all watch. We assume you've been watching as long and as closely as we all have or, barring that, that you won't want to let on that you haven't and that you'll be happy to ask for help or Google what you don't understand.

I think your point was that maybe it's edging a little close to the opaque sometimes and that can be frustrating for people not up on all the same lingo as the person asking the question or making the comment. So, yeah, that's not a bad idea. For people asking questions, thay can probably broaden their reach by being less obscure. Motivated people can also look things up.
posted by jessamyn (staff) at 8:05 PM on October 7, 2007 [1 favorite]


MetaFilter: frustrating for people not up on all the same lingo.
posted by Duncan at 8:14 PM on October 7, 2007


QTMPOA
posted by carsonb at 8:24 PM on October 7, 2007


One of the advantages of posting on the internet is that you CAN be in the "in" group without a time limit. You aren't face to face with people who are saying DTMFA or I CAN HAS CHEEZBURGER? or 4CHAN LULZ while the entire conversation is going over your head and you feel too embarrassed to have someone explain everything. With a forum such a MetaFilter or whatever, someone can take the half second to google a term, know what was going on, and be able to contribute to the conversation.
posted by spec80 at 8:40 PM on October 7, 2007


A lot of the acronymizing and geekspeak is just another way of making "one of us?" distinctions not really consciously posturing but just "Oh if you read MeFi you probably also know about the LOLCATS and AYBABTU and XKCD."

Really? I've always thought the opposite: that there's more pushback here at Metafilter (as well there should be IMHO YMMV LOLWTF) for CRAPP (Crassly Robotic Acronym Posting) than in may other webby places, in part because there's a kinda baked-in respect for words and wordplay, and ritual newb-taunting aside, a tendency to welcome with open arms new people with something to say and an interesting way to say it.

On MeFi we have a slim barrier to membership but there are a lot of other ways that people differentiate in various us v. them ways.

If anything, I reckon the us vs them here at Metafilter has always been the 'us' who raise an eyebrow at folks who unironically whip out the LOLs and the 'them' who reckon it's totally, like, OK.
posted by stavrosthewonderchicken at 9:08 PM on October 7, 2007


G O O G L E...
posted by delmoi at 9:12 PM on October 7, 2007


But I don't think linking to definitions for acronyms makes a lick of sense. The half a second you saved by typing the acronym is kind of nullified by having to track down and link a definition for the terminally unclueified. Just don't use 'em would seem the best way to go...

Which is to say, yes, get the hell off oats' lawn, but don't even think of getting your dirty footprints all over mine, you meddlesome kids!
posted by stavrosthewonderchicken at 9:13 PM on October 7, 2007


Acronymfinder has it.
posted by Steven C. Den Beste at 9:48 PM on October 7, 2007


Test: DTMFA
posted by stavrosthewonderchicken at 9:51 PM on October 7, 2007 [1 favorite]


OK, that was <abbr title="Dual-Tone Multifrequency Aardvark? Delirium Tremens Master of Fine Arts?">DTMFA</abbr>, if anyone wants to be really nice about these things in the future. Still seems easier just to use words, though.
posted by stavrosthewonderchicken at 9:53 PM on October 7, 2007 [1 favorite]


jessamyn : Don't Touch Me Funnily Again!

Here I would normally make a snark about the first time I touched her in an inappropriate but humorous manner, but I fear that the dread Librarian has a killer right-hook and a penchant for arsonistic revenge, so I must ask,

Don't Torch My Fucking Apartment.

Please?
posted by quin at 10:35 PM on October 7, 2007


Delirium Tremens Master of Fine Arts?

nice matthew barney reference. or was that accidental?

I like my acronyms to be as profane as possible, TYVM.

you should have gone with "TYVFM,A"
posted by Hat Maui at 10:55 PM on October 7, 2007


wait, you know what my brain just did? processed "delirium tremens" as "vas deferens." stupid brain! that matthew barney "reference" i perceived makes NO SENSE AT ALL!

sorry.
posted by Hat Maui at 11:00 PM on October 7, 2007


Be a hip dude, Oat! Next time, don't let them know you had to look it up on Urban Dictionary.
posted by Dave Faris at 11:01 PM on October 7, 2007


Don't touch my fat ass?

Part of that statement could strike one as a concept with merit.
posted by y2karl at 11:17 PM on October 7, 2007


don't taze me, fraternal african

I'm speechless. Well played.
posted by spiderskull at 12:25 AM on October 8, 2007


Motivated people can also look things up

Exactly, FCOL*.



*For crying out loud.
posted by Roach at 12:37 AM on October 8, 2007


I like my acronyms to be as profane as possible, TYVM.

I think you mean TYVMA.
posted by grouse at 1:36 AM on October 8, 2007


I wish I was clever enough to make a DTMFA "is not in charge of gundam" backronym.
posted by blasdelf at 2:05 AM on October 8, 2007


You don't even have to fumble around in google, we have a page on the wiki specifically for this.
posted by Rhomboid at 3:24 AM on October 8, 2007


Secret
Handshake
Identifies
Bloviating
Bloggers
Or
Linguisitc
Ephraimite
Testamental
Holocaust
posted by [expletive deleted] at 4:00 AM on October 8, 2007 [2 favorites]


funny, i was just talking to someone about my username being an acronym originally.
posted by Dillonlikescookies at 4:24 AM on October 8, 2007


processed "delirium tremens" as "vas deferens." stupid brain!

Yeah, there's a vast difference.
posted by goodnewsfortheinsane at 4:33 AM on October 8, 2007 [1 favorite]


And here I thought it was an initialism.
How do you pronounce this acronym?
posted by MtDewd at 6:13 AM on October 8, 2007


Ha, force your personal views on semantics on us as you wish, MtDewd, but I think you yourself know the dictionaries are against you.
posted by goodnewsfortheinsane at 6:47 AM on October 8, 2007


goodnewsfortheinsane: I think you know that the published work of lexicographic professionals cannot possibly compare to MtDewd's strongly held personal views.
posted by grouse at 7:03 AM on October 8, 2007


Don't Trash My Feeble Argument
posted by MtDewd at 7:57 AM on October 8, 2007 [1 favorite]


Consarnit, oats; read the 'effin xref.

DEET-muff-uh, btw.
posted by cortex (staff) at 8:04 AM on October 8, 2007


Damn This Meta Filter Angst
posted by edgeways at 9:36 AM on October 8, 2007




Ok, ok, I get it. Please don't hit me again^W^W^W^Wclose thread.
posted by oats at 11:32 AM on October 8, 2007


Are those supposed to be 'H's?
posted by !Jim at 11:56 PM on October 8, 2007


Well, that would give you the output "Please don't hit me aclose thread" instead of "Please close thread." So no.
posted by grouse at 1:36 AM on October 9, 2007


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